An Application of Relational Dialectics Essay -- When Harry Met Sally

An Application of Relational Dialectics Leslie Baxter and Barbara Montgomery are interested in the communication that occurs in close relationships. I am going to focus on the three relational dialects which consist of connectedness-separateness, certainty-uncertainty, and openness-closedness. These three dialects are central to Baxter's and Montgomery's theory but they want to go more indepth than previous theorists have on these specific dialects. I will discuss this theory in the context of "When Harry Met Sally." Connectedness-Separateness: Billy Crystal plays "Harry," a man who believes that women and men can not be friends. Men always have sex on their minds so it interferes with the chance to be plutonic friends with women. He shows a separateness from women because he doesn't want to get to close to Meg Ryan who plays "Sally," a woman who believes the exact opposite. Their relationship starts out with contraditions and continues throughout the movie. As years pass, they meet up with one another again and continue their argument over the relationship between men ...